Litman Gregory Masters Alternative Strategies Fund Reaches $100 Million in Total Net Assets in Two Months After Launch

LARKSPUR, Calif.--()--Litman Gregory Fund Advisors, LLC, an affiliate of fee-only investment advisory firm Litman Gregory Asset Management, today announced that the Litman Gregory Masters Alternative Strategies Fund (MASFX) surpassed $100 million in total net assets in two months after the fund was launched on September 30, 2011. As of December 31, 2011 the fund has more than $167 million in total net assets.

"We see strong demand from financial advisors seeking access to world-class managers of alternative strategies, at a reasonable cost, in a public mutual fund structure. Advisors also see the diversification offered by the multi-manager structure as a particularly appealing feature of the fund," said Ken Gregory, Chief Investment Strategist and Founding Partner of Litman Gregory Asset Management, LLC and Litman Gregory Fund Advisors, LLC.

The Litman Gregory Masters Alternative Strategies Fund is a multi-manager, multi-strategy fund that combines alternative and absolute-return-oriented strategies chosen based on Litman Gregory’s conviction that each individual manager’s strategy is compelling, and that collectively the strategies are well diversified. The fund seeks to achieve long-term returns with lower risk and lower volatility than the stock market, and with relatively low correlation to stock and bond market indexes at a reasonable cost.

The fund is run by Litman Gregory Fund Advisors, and Jeremy DeGroot is the portfolio manager. Litman Gregory hired four sub-advisors to run four distinct strategies:

  • DoubleLine Capital—Jeffrey Gundlach: Opportunistic Income
  • FPA—Steven Romick, Brian Selmo, Mike Landecker: Contrarian Opportunity
  • Loomis Sayles—Matt Eagan, Kevin Kearns, Todd Vandam: Absolute-Return Fixed-Income
  • Water Island Capital—John Orrico, Todd Munn, Roger Foltynowicz, Gregg Loprete: Arbitrage

Ken Gregory participated in a recent Q&A on the fund, which can be found at http://mastersfunds.com/pdfs/other/AltFundQA_retail.pdf. In the interview, Mr. Gregory discusses what the new Litman Gregory Masters Alternative Strategies Fund (MASFX) seeks to offer risk-averse investors, the gaps in the alternatives space that the fund seeks to fill, and the flexibility the fund’s structure offers the fund’s sub-advisors.

About Litman Gregory

Litman Gregory Fund Advisors, LLC is the advisor to the Litman Gregory Masters Funds and as such is responsible for sub-advisor due diligence and selection, day-to-day coordination with the sub-advisors, monitoring the individual performance and capabilities of the investment managers, and fund administration. Since 1987 the Litman Gregory team has researched, analyzed, and written about hundreds of stock-picking teams and mutual funds and put their ideas to the test by designing and successfully investing in portfolios of funds. Drawing on insights gained from years of evaluating and analyzing mutual funds, Litman Gregory Fund Advisors is uniquely qualified to oversee the funds’ operations. Litman Gregory Fund Advisors is an affiliate of three other separate but related Litman Gregory companies, all based on the core expertise of investment-manager and asset-class research and selection: Litman Gregory Asset Management, LLC, which has provided investment management services to individuals, family groups, foundations, and endowments since 1987; Litman Gregory AdvisorIntelligence, a web-based investment research service for financial advisors; and Litman Gregory Managed Portfolios.

While the fund is no-load, management and other expenses still apply. Please refer to the prospectus for further details.

Diversification does not assure a profit or protect against loss in a declining market.

The funds' investment objectives, risks, charges, and expenses must be considered carefully before investing. The prospectus contains this and other important information about the investment company, and it may be obtained by calling 1-800-960-0188, or visiting www.mastersfunds.com. Read it carefully before investing.

Though not an international fund, the fund may invest in foreign securities. Investing in foreign securities exposes investors to economic, political, and market risks, and fluctuations in foreign currencies. Investments in debt securities typically decrease when interest rates rise. This risk is usually greater for longer-term debt securities. Investments in mortgage-backed securities include additional risks that investor should be aware of including credit risk, prepayment risk, possible illiquidity, and default, as well as increased susceptibility to adverse economic developments. Investments in lower-rated and non-rated securities present a greater risk of loss to principal and interest than higher-rated securities. Derivatives may involve certain costs and risks such as liquidity, interest rate, market, credit, management, and the risk that a position could not be closed when most advantageous. Investing in derivatives could lose more than the amount invested. The fund may make short sales of securities, which involves the risk that losses may exceed the original amount invested. Merger arbitrage investments risk loss if a proposed reorganization in which the fund invests is renegotiated or terminated.

Correlation is a statistical measure of how two securities move in relation to each other.

The Litman Gregory Masters Funds are distributed by Quasar Distributors, LLC.

Contacts

Media:
Hewes Communications, Inc.
Tucker Hewes, 212-207-9451
tucker@hewescomm.com

Contacts

Media:
Hewes Communications, Inc.
Tucker Hewes, 212-207-9451
tucker@hewescomm.com